PAK vs ENG 2nd Test: Kamran Ghulam Joins Unique Pakistan List With Century on Debut

Kamran Ghulam had big shoes to fill, replacing Babar Azam in the Pakistan team for the second Test against England in Multan, and the middle-order batter delivered by smashing a century on Test debut, joining unique company in the process.

Kamran, who walked into bat at number 4 with his side in a spot of bother at 19/2, scored 118 off 224 balls in his very first Test appearance and took Pakistan to 259/5 at stumps on day 1 of the second Multan Test.

The 29-year-old steadied the ship with Saim Ayub (77 off 160 balls) before another stand with Mohammad Rizwan (37* off 89 balls) en-route to reaching the three-figure mark at the Multan Cricket Ground. He hit 1 six and 11 fours during his knock which was ended by Shoaib Bashir.

With this century, Ghulam becomes the 116th player to score a Test century on debut and the 13th player in Pakistan's red ball history to achieve the feat, joining the likes of Javed Miandad and Saleem Malik to name a few. Here is a look at the list:

List of players from Pakistan to score century on Test debut

Khalid Ibadulla - 166 vs Australia in Karachi (1964)
Javed Miandad - 163 New Zealand in Lahore (1976)
Saleem Malik - 100* vs Sri Lanka in Karachi (1982)
Mohammad Wasim - 109* vs New Zealand in Lahore (1996)
Ali Naqvi - 115 vs South Africa in Rawalpindi (1997)
Azhar Mahmood - 128* vs South Africa in Rawalpindi (1997)
Younis Khan - 107 vs Sri Lanka in Multan (2000)
Taufeeq Umar - 104 vs Bangladesh in Multan (2001)
Yasir Hameed - 170 & 105 vs Bangladesh in Karachi (2003)
Fawad Alam - 168 vs Sri Lanka in Colombo (2009)
Umar Akmal - 129 vs New Zealand in Dunedin (2009)
Abid Ali - 109* vs Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi (2019)
Kamran Ghulam - 118 vs England in Multan 2024

Yaseer Hameed is only one of two players in Test cricket history to score a twin century on debut. Hameed achieved the feat in 2003 against Banglades with century in both innings of a Test in Karachi. Ghulam will hope to replicate that feat when he comes out to bat in the second innings.

Coming back to the Multan Test, Pakistan lost skipper Shan Masood and Abdullah Shafiq early with Jack Leach accounting for the two dismissals. But Ghulam and Ayub helped Pakistan go past 150 with a century-stand before the team reached 259/5 at stumps.

For England, Leach claimed two wickets, while Bashir, Brydon Carse and Matthew Potts took a wicket each to keep them in the contest at the close of play on day one.

Ghulam reacts after debut century

Ghulam said there was immense pressure on him to perform after taking Babar Azam's place in the team, adding that his perseverance in domestic cricket for the last four years had finally paid off.

"It has been frustrating waiting for nearly four years to finally get a chance to play for Pakistan. I had so much passion and wanted to do well when I got the chance," Kamran told the media.

"I waited patiently as I knew sooner or later I would get my chance. I think years of grinding it out in domestic cricket has given me the temperament and skills to play on all sorts of pitches and all types of bowlers.

"Just the habit of getting runs in domestic cricket prepares you for the big stage rest is all about temperament and handling the pressure," he added.

Ghulam admitted that it was not easy to replace a player of Babar's stature. "Yes the pressure was there playing in his (Babar) place but I think the desire I had to succeed overrode that pressure."